Shakespeare once said “Neither a lender nor a borrower be”. That’s a nice sentiment, but the bard didn’t live in an era of subprime mortgages, negative equity and business insolvency. In his day, all you had to do was write a few sonnets for a wealthy patron and you were golden. In the 21st century, however, lending and borrowing are not only essential in a realistic business climate, they’re the basis of our entire global economy.

In both personal and business finances, peaks and troughs are inevitable, and even the most successful among us have our rough times. From hip hop icon 50 Cent to Mark Twain, many of successful business and creative types face stared down bankruptcy and come through it stronger than ever. Even the billionaire president Donald Trump has been declared bankrupt four times.

Myriad circumstances may result in individuals and businesses filing for bankruptcy. While it’s undeniably a stressful and upsetting experience, it’s important to remember that though there are certainly repercussions following bankruptcy, by no means is it the end.

If bankruptcy is looking like a possibility, or even an inevitability here are some tips that will help you to make an informed decision whether or not to file:

Remember… You are not alone

Facing bankruptcy and feel like an isolating experience, but you are most assuredly not alone. In fact, over 800,000 people applied for bankruptcy in federal court last year. Filing will neither make you a social pariah nor mark you out as a failure. It is, however, important that you do it right, so hiring a bankruptcy attorney should be one of your highest priorities. Your spouse or partner doesn’t even need to file alongside you.

There are different kinds of bankruptcy

In the US there are two forms of bankruptcy; Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 and which you file for will depend on your circumstances. A Chapter 7 requires the business or individual’s assets to be liquidated, using them to pay creditors as much of the outstanding debt as possible. A trustee will be appointed to facilitate the liquidation and ensure that creditors are paid in proportion to the debt. A Chapter 11, on the other hand, reorganizes the debts and adjusts them in terms of repayment amounts and interest rates (much like consolidation).

You may still be able to get credit

You may feel that it’s the end for you and your business, but lines of credit will still be open to you. Remember, however, that over-reliance on credit is what leads many to bankruptcy in the first place. Bankruptcy is a highly instructive tool for many as it teaches them to really appreciate the importance of budgeting and financial planning. That said, the bankruptcy is not quite as prohibitive in terms of credit as many believe.

But it’s important to be realistic

Bankruptcy is intended to wipe the slate clean. It’s a fresh start for businesses and individuals, but it’s not without financial consequences. Credit gets harder to come by (but not impossible) and it could have repercussions on your business borrowing. Bankruptcy can help you but it should also be considered a last resort. You should first consider an alternative such as a consolidation plan before filing for bankruptcy.

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For many people who have the funds available, buying a second property is the ideal way to channel their money effectively. But before you get swept away with the amount of rental money that will provide a boost to your earnings or the funds that you will make from renovating it, you should think about all the other costs and factors that are not so apparent. To give you a helping hand, here are a few of the main things that you should consider before taking the plunge and buying that property.

Create a Clear Plan

First of all, you need to have a clear idea in your mind about what you are actually going to do with the property as this will massively influence your overall decision. If you are planning on renting it, you need to choose a place that is an attractive place to live for your target renters – whether they are students, young professionals or families. If you are planning on selling the place, you need to carefully do your sums so you identify a property that can be renovated for a good cost, while still providing you with a healthy return on your investment.

Select a Good Location

Just like choosing your own house to live in, location is everything. We have already talked about how this could affect renters, but you also need to consider how easy it is to get to your new home. This is especially important if you are planning on taking a ‘hands on’ role in the rental or development. If this is not the case, it may not be so much of an issue, but you still need to choose a location that is going to be appealing for people. Also, consider whether you will be buying land with the property as well – check out this guide for more info about house and land packages. Consider all factors including public transport links, proximity to schools and other facilities and the type of neighbourhood it is.

Budget for Unforeseen Costs

Any sort of big investment like this has the potential for unforeseen costs. Aside from the mortgage and taxes, you should also think about maintenance costs, which will play a major role regardless of whether you are planning on renting the place out or selling it on. Decoration and repair bills should all be factored in as well. Many first-time investors fall into the trap of underestimating how much it will be to get their new property up to code, so make sure that this doesn’t happen to you.

Plan Your Involvement

Decide whether you will be heavily involved in all aspects of the project or whether you will be leaving the job to external agencies. If it is the latter, you need to make sure that you choose some organisations that you trust to handle any issues along the way. Personal recommendations are always going to be the best way of ensuring you have the right people for the job. Each approach has its pros and cons, so make sure that you are fully aware of all of these before committing either way.

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Making more money in business is crucial if you want to grow your business and become bigger and better. The more money you make, the bigger you can get as you can put money into sources to help you. You could maybe even pay yourself more once you’ve established this steady stream of money. If you’d like to make more money for your business, here are 15 tips that could help you:

Partner Up with Another Business

Look for another business to partner up with. Maybe their product enhances your product, or their service can work in harmony with your service. If you agree to work together, you could experience double the success as you share clients. Make sure you know how to approach businesses properly, and that what you have to offer them is of value too.

Price Yourself Properly

When you have a business, pricing yourself is important. You want to make sure you’re priced just right for what you offer. You want a profit, and you want people to be attracted to your price point. However, you shouldn’t price yourself out of the market. Pricing yourself too high could result in people not using you, but pricing yourself too low could make people wonder why you’re so cheap. Taking the time to do your research and pricing yourself accordingly is key to making more money in business. Don’t price yourself so cheap that you’re doing yourself a disservice.

Target Your Audience Properly

Whatever you’re doing, make sure you’ve taken the time to target your audience properly. When you know who your audience are and what they want, you can begin to target them in a way that will attract them most. Do you really know what they want? Do you really know who they are and where to find them? Make sure you know these things in order to target them!

Strengthen Your Online Presence

Having a strong online presence makes people trust you more. When they can see that you’re present a number of places online, they’ll see that you’re a reputable company. They’ll see that you haven’t gone stale when you keep your social media and website updated too. Many people rely on a strong online presence to decide whether they’ll work with a specific company or not.

Strengthen Your Brand

Having a strong brand makes you more trustworthy. You can strengthen your brand by making sure you have a clear message, colours, and tone of voice. Make sure you’re consistent wherever you use your brand.

Build Up a Good Reputation

Building up a good reputation is important if you want people to work with you. All it takes is a few unhappy customers to spoil your reputation. Make sure you take care of your customers and go the extra mile for them. Doing this will ensure they tell people how satisfied they were with you, and they’ll be more likely to come back.

Only Hire the Best Staff

Make sure you only hire the best staff when it’s time to choose people to work with you. Make sure the interview process is thorough, and you don’t just pick somebody because you can save money when paying them. Hiring them based on their skills and their personality will ensure they fit in well and bring something new to your team. Your staff help to drive you forward!

Invest in and Train Your Staff

When you have a good team of staff, it isn’t enough to simply keep everything the way it is. Make sure you invest in and train your staff. This shows them that you’re serious about their progress. It’ll also improve your business as they learn new skills. You can do this a number of ways, from team building to HR seminars by Peninsula.

Focus on Current Customers

Instead of always trying to get new customers, focus on your current customers to keep them coming back for more. Treat your loyal customers and they will repay you by giving word of mouth recommendations to people they know. This is how you get repeat custom and build a great reputation.

Search for Better Vendors

Building good relationships with your vendors is important, but could you be doing better? Each year you should review contracts to make sure you couldn’t be getting a better deal elsewhere. You could be saving money and getting a better deal!

Care About the Environment

Caring about the environment can save you money and make you a more appealing business to work with. All you have to do is make sure your employees are on the same page as you. Turn things off when you’re finished with them. Recycle. Work with other companies who care about the environment. Make it known that you care!

Continue to Expand Your Own Knowledge

Make sure you’re not just focused on the knowledge of your staff. There could be some things you need to know too. Don’t assume that you know it all! Continue to expand your own knowledge to become a better boss and business owner.

Attend Events

Make sure you attend events and seminars. Here you can network, build relationships, and spread the word of your business. You can learn a lot and teach a lot. They can be invaluable to making more money in business.

Automate a Process

Take a look at the processes you do daily and see if there are ways you can automate it. This will save you time, and time equals money!

Take Breaks

If you don’t take a break from time to time, you could burn out. You want to keep your passion for your business going in the long run, so don’t exhaust yourself. Take time to celebrate with your friends and family. A work/home life balance is important and a great way to recharge your batteries.

See? It isn’t too difficult to make more money in business if you make a few changes as mentioned in this guide. Leave your own tips below!

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There are many different types of loan out there. So, if you’re thinking about borrowing money, here are the forms of loan you should know about.

1. Credit

Lines of credit allow you to borrow money up a maximum allowable balance. This limit starts again at the beginning of each month so that you can keep borrowing and paying off the debt continually. Obviously, there are minimums and interest to take into consideration. They work in a similar way to credit cards, and they are another thing you can consider. Credit is quite cheap right now, so many people are turning to it rather than taking out a loan that is a little more long-term. It’s a sensible move.

2. Business Loans

Small loans for entrepreneurs help them to get their first foot on the ladder in the world of business. This is the kind of financial boost that people really need when they are trying to start a business of their own. And can be pretty much impossible to do this unless you have the money to start out in the first place. Building a business on debt is never the ideal scenario, but for many people, it’s the only option out there. If you can get one that only covers your needs and has a good interest rate, they can be very useful.

3. Personal Loans

A personal loan is the most common and conventional form of loan out there. They can be used to make improvements to the house, buy a new car or do whatever you want to do. These are usually done by visiting your local bank and discussing things with them. The bank manager will want to know about what kind of thing you will use the money for. And your credit history will obviously be taken into consideration before a loan is given to you. It’s a safe way to borrow relatively small amounts of money.

4. Payday Loans

Payday loans have gotten a pretty bad reputation over the years. And some of that is justified. If people don’t read the small print and the facts are not presented to them clearly, they can get in a big mess. But that doesn’t mean that they have no use at all. They should be used very responsibly by lenders and borrowers alike. And if that’s the case, they can be great ways to make short-term payments while you are waiting for your pay to arrive. And as soon as it does arrive, pay back that debt. Go to www.ferratum.com.au to find out more.

5. Mortgages

Buying a home is one of the biggest steps most of us ever take in life. There are not many bigger purchases that any of us will make in our lives than this one. A mortgage covers the cost of buying your home for people, like most of us, who can’t afford to buy their home outright. The mortgage is long-term, and it is paid back over the course of decades in most cases. They are secure loans, meaning that the collateral is the home that you are living in. If you can’t make repayments, it can be repossessed. Visit www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk to find out more.

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There are many different strategies you could use to get your finances back on track this year. However, some concepts are better than others, and so you need some advice from the experts. People who use the ideas and suggestions on this page are guaranteed to see an improvement. Even those with a poor credit score can benefit from these tips and tricks. Just read the article carefully and then apply the information to your situation. With a bit of luck, you’ll have more cash in your accounts for those annual family holidays if you’re smart.

Make low-risk investments

Anyone can use their savings to make investments and create a profit this year. The issue is that most people won’t know where to start. Make sure you don’t trade on the stock market unless you perform a lot of research and employ expert assistance. There are too many variables, and you could lose everything. However, precious metal investments like gold and silver will make sense. That is one of the most stable markets in the world, and so you should always make money. Just bear in mind that it can take a few months or even a couple of years before you see a healthy return.

Get a consolidation loan

Are your finances in a mess because you’re in too much debt? If that’s the case, applying for a consolidation loan could make sense. It would mean the original creditors are no longer allowed to send letters or call your phone. It would also mean you only have to make one affordable payment each month. Always read the small print before signing any paperwork, and make sure you use a reputable provider. In most instances, your outgoings will decrease, but you will have to make the payments for much longer.

Contact financial advice specialists

Blueprint Wealth’s financial advice helped many people to improve their financial situations last year. There are hundreds of firms working in that industry, and you just need to find one that meets your standards. In most circumstances, those companies will use their expertise to assist you. They will work out the best bank accounts, investments, and mortgages for all their clients. They can also help with retirement planning and more. People in the worst situations should always seek advice from professionals. Otherwise, you might overlook something that could drastically increase your cash flow.

Now you know about some great ways to get your finances back on track, you can start today. It’s never going to be an exact science, and you might get some things wrong. However, we all need to take proactive action and solve our money problems when they become severe. Losing your home is the last thing you want to happen. Even so, it’s something that might occur if you fail to settle your debts and boost your income. Make sure you find a decent broker if you plan to make investments, and interview them thoroughly. There are many cowboys out there who are more interested in getting your money than making a profit.

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